New York Botanical Garden – 125th Anniversary Special Events

A national treasure for all Americans, the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) retains a fine example of a Victorian greenhouse, the simply splendid Enid A.Haupt Conservatory.

Dedicated to advancing the study of horticulture at the cutting edge of plant research, by connecting gardening to the arts and humanities the NYBG offers multidisciplinary interpretive exhibitions and educational programs throughout the year, reaffirming its goals.

Founded in 1891 to “retain as much as possible the natural scenery of the place”, which… in beauty far exceeds that of any existing botanic garden”, today the garden is a vital research facility, in which the continual monitoring of changes in climate on its fragile ecological system are carried out continually.

This great botanical garden has many compartments that add up to it being a whole renowned internationally.

Walkway through the Thain Family Forest, New York Botanical Garden, New York

It’s an important aspect of the earth’s fragile ecological system in a place of great beauty, especially in spring and autumn when all the blossoms come out and the leaves colour gloriously before they fall.

In the Thain Family Forest despite being battered by monster storms, many of the trees still shed their canopies and covers annually to make compost for the plant life that surrounds them.

They represent many lands and cultures and amazingly, include the last remnants of the great forest wilderness with the Bronx River running through it, much of which was destroyed to originally create the city.

It’s an important aspect of the earth’s fragile ecological system in a place of great beauty, especially in spring and autumn when all the blossoms come out and the leaves colour gloriously before they fall.

The only fresh water available to early New Yorker’s, like other rivers of the world the Bronx River suffered when it became a refuse for society. Now in the care of the NYBG it has been rejuvenated so it can continue to offer society a great deal of spiritual refreshment.

The Orchid Show: Orchidelirium commences February 27, 2016 and will also be sure to inspire innovation. Discoveries of new varieties of orchid blooms during the nineteenth century led to what can only be described as a hysterical response, which was aptly named Orchidelirium, the inspiration for this year’s show.

Annually this event is one many people look forward to as it offers an opportunity for orchid growers and those tracking down yet more rare and exotic varieties of orchids to find them.

It also makes them accessible to all who admire these wonderful flowers for their beauty of both form and colour.

Daffodil Hill in Spring, surmounted by beautiful blossom, courtesy New York Botanical Garden

The ‘Daffodil Celebration’ will be combined with a wine weekend, April 23 – 24.

Must say that I would love to be there to see 150,000 daffodil bulbs in bloom, all tossing their happy golden heads in a sprightly dance.

These sunny lovely flowers always fill my heart with pleasure and remind me of the words of William Wordsworth

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

The 125th Anniversary Edition: The New York Botanical Garden published by Abrams on April 28, 2016, will be a celebration of its achievements and you can order your copy now.

April 29 until May 1 an Antique Garden Furniture Fair, which is the country’s most renowned stage for authentic garden antiques and rarities, will be sure to delight the crowds.

The fair returns to NYBG, with a whole new look and feel designed and produced by the celebrated party planner and interior designer Ken Fulk.

Participants will be able to peruse extensive collections of ornament, decorative art, and timeless furniture for the home and garden by some thirty dealers.

There is a Mother’s Day Weekend Garden Party in May, where you can bring a picnic and enjoy live music, games and more.

After restoration and expansion, the historic Lilac Collection will reopen in the most spectacular of all the Spring landscapes in New York City.

What ravishing flowers they are.

From May 14 – September 11 view paintings and sculptures by famed American Impressionists, with a stunning flower show evoking the landscapes depicted in their works to accompany it.

During autumn the NYBG will be dedicating the Michael and Judy Steinhardt Maple Collection, one of my favourite of all trees.

The garden’s important historic collection of maples from around the world has been expanded, with the addition of many rare and unusual plants, including new Japanese maple cultivars.

The collection features dozens of rare and unusual specimens planted among rock outcrops and ancient shade trees that rise above open lawns where Japanese tree peonies and flowering perennials add splashes of colour.

Magnificent Trees by the Bronx River, part of the Thain family forest within the purview of the New York Botanical Garden

The 125th Anniversary Science and Conservation Symposium on September 23rd, with a panel of experts who will be discussing the challenges of saving the plants of the world, should prove to be ground breaking.

In the NYBG the biodiversity of the plant life is astonishing, the largest tree a London plane, just like those planted by ancient Romans all over their empire, to shelter their citizens and troops on the move from the noonday sun.

There are fountains and follies and great allées of Tulip trees, not to mention the stands of poplars and more, including those marvellous maples and the magnolias.

The remnant of the original forest that once covered most of New York cities area generates feed for a multiplicity of wildlife, including a bevvy of wonderful birds on the wing.

Visiting researchers study there, family groups picnic there, while yet others singly and with friends daily drink in its many delights by strolling in its environs as they re-imagine their lives and futures.

Being the NYBG‘s 125th Anniversary year locals who haven’t visited yet, as well as tourists to New York have a wonderful reason to discover its many wonders.

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Carolyn McDowall FRSA has gained considerable experience and business acumen in her professional career. An independent cultural and social historian, Carolyn is an interior designer by trade. She has been involved in the creative sector for over thirty years in Australia; completing interior design projects, creating and producing innovative corporate and not-for profit (social profit) community events. She has over that time continuously conducted independent research , while designing, developing, and producing educational art and design history programs in conjunction with renowned specialist colleagues.

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